Helen H. (Helen Hamilton) Gardener

Born Mary Alice Chenoweth, Helen Hamilton Gardener became known as a novelist, essayist, lecturer, and outspoken advocate for women’s equality. Writing under the name Helen H. Gardener, she took on subjects that were unusually bold for her time, especially the double standards applied to women and the misuse of science to argue that women were naturally inferior.

Her best-known nonfiction work, Sex in Brain, argued against claims that women’s intellectual abilities were limited by biology. She was also active in the woman suffrage movement and worked closely with leading reformers as the campaign for voting rights neared success.

Later in life, she entered federal service and became the highest-ranking woman in the U.S. civil service of her day, serving on the U.S. Civil Service Commission after the ratification of the Nineteenth Amendment. Her career is remembered as a blend of sharp writing, public advocacy, and practical political achievement.